Author: M I Khan in
Bhubaneswar
Publication: Rediff
on Net
Date: June 19, 2000
Christian missionaries
in Orissa are planning to organise a 'reconversion camp' in tribal dominated
Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj districts.
They are planning to
hit back at Hinduvta forces, who had reconverted 70 tribal Christians into
the Hindu fold a fortnight back at the communally sensitive Manoharpur
village, where Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two sons had
been burnt to death by a mob led by Dara Singh last year.
Sources said the camp
will be held openly, to prove wrong Hinduvta forces' claims of forceful
conversions. "We will organise a few camps in the state to counter the
hate campaign of Hinduvta forces, that Christian missionaries are luring
and forcing tribals to become Christians," a Christian leader said.
Christian missionaries
are likely to organise a camp in Keonjhar today and another in the last
week of the month. Besides, two camps will be organised in neighbouring
Mayurbhanj district. "Over a dozen tribals are likely to embrace Christianity,"
the sources said.
Superintendent of Police
(Keonjhar district) A K Roy told rediff.com over the telephone that Christian
organisations are likely to organise a programme today, when they will
reconvert some tribals. "They (Christians) have intimated the district
collector about their programme, in which they will reconvert three-four
tribals," Roy said.
He said the Christian
organisations have informed the district administration about their programme
in Anandpur. He admitted that Christian organisations have been organising
such programmes regularly.
After the reconversion
drive by Puri Sankaracharya, backed by Sangh Parivar outfits at Manoharpur
early this month, where 70 tribal Christians were reconverted, three tribals
of Haridabadi village in Keonjhar district, backed by Christian missionaries,
filed affidavits expressing their desire to embrace Christianity.
Global Council of Indian
Christians national convenor Sajan K George, after a visit to Manoharpur,
claimed that only three of 70 reconverts had actually been baptised. That's
why, the three tribals' intimation to the Keonjhar district collector comes
after the mass reconversion of 70 tribal Christians, which indicates that
Christian organisations are not in a mood to accept the reconversion drive
of Hinduvta forces.
Just after the reconversion
drive of the Sankaracharya of Puri at Manoharpur , sources said that four
tribals from Keonjhar districts were reconverted to Christianity, at a
church in Balasore town. "Fearing a backlash, Christian missionaries silently
reconverted four tribals," sources said, but added that later it was decided
to organise a reconversion camp openly.
Christian leaders have
alleged that a reconversion function at Manoharpur was held under the patronage
of the Orissa government. "The authorities of the state government and
various central agencies were involved in persuading Christians to join
the Hindu fold. The government and Sangh Parivar members hatched a secret
plan to convert Christians,'' they alleged.
The Anandpur Dhama Jagaran
Samiti, a newly formed local Hindu outfit, said more reconversion drives
would be organised in tribal dominated Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj. It has
vowed to reconvert all tribal Hindus who were converted to Christianity
in the last four decades.
